Methodological problems in solvency assessment of an insurance company

The recent wide development and changes in insurance markets highlighted the necessity to map out the solvency analysis in a more complete framework. The approach we present in the paper comes up with an integrated analysis of the risk profile of an insurance business, taking into account the actual European directives about solvency assessment. The aim of the paper is to construct a methodology apt to incorporate properly the effect of the risk sources in calculating mathematical provisions related to a portfolio of insurance policies.Life insurance, financial risk, demographic risk, capital adequacy, reserves, conditional random processes

Risk-adjusted performance indicators in life insurance

The paper approaches the potential of risk-adjusted performance indicators in life insurance, with special reference to a structured policy. The final issue is the computation of risk adjusted indicators as a tool to evaluate the portfolio given a policy structure. The computation of such indicator could be suitable for the appraisal of both portfolio optimization and potential profits of the structured policy. The selection tool is put into an asset and liability management decision making context, where the relationship between expected surplus and capital at risk are compared. The analysis is applied to a structured temporary annuity and is treated by means of Monte Carlo simulations

The double RGB in M 2: C, N, Sr and Ba abundances

The globular cluster M 2 has a photometrically detected double red giant branch (RGB) sequence. We investigate here the chemical differences between the two RGBs in order to gain insight in the star formation history of this cluster. The low-resolution spectra, covering the blue spectral range, were collected with the MODS spectrograph on the LBT, and analyzed via spectrum synthesis technique. The high quality of the spectra allows us to measure C, N, Ba, and Sr abundances relative to iron for 15 RGB stars distributed along the two sequences. We add to the MODS sample C and N measurements for 35 additional stars belonging to the blue RGB sequence, presented in Lardo et al. (2012). We find a clear separation between the two groups of stars in s-process elements as well as C and N content. Both groups display a C-N anti-correlation and the red RGB stars are on average richer in C and N with respect to the blue RGB. Our results reinforce the suggestion that M2 belongs to the family of globular clusters with complex star formation history, together with Omega Cen, NGC 1851, and M 22.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRA

The identification of the optical companion to the binary millisecond pulsar J0610-2100 in the Galactic field

We have used deep V and R images acquired at the ESO Very Large Telescope to identify the optical companion to the binary pulsar PSR J0610-2100, one of the black-widow millisecond pulsars recently detected by the Fermi Gamma-ray Telescope in the Galactic plane. We found a faint star (V~26.7) nearly coincident (\delta r ~0".28) with the pulsar nominal position. This star is visible only in half of the available images, while it disappears in the deepest ones (those acquired under the best seeing conditions), thus indicating that it is variable. Although our observations do not sample the entire orbital period (P=0.28 d) of the pulsar, we found that the optical modulation of the variable star nicely correlates with the pulsar orbital period and describes a well defined peak (R~25.6) at \Phi=0.75, suggesting a modulation due to the pulsar heating. We tentatively conclude that the companion to PSR J0610-2100 is a heavily ablated very low mass star (~ 0.02Msun) that completely filled its Roche Lobe.Comment: 17 pages, 5 figures - Accepted for pubblication in Ap

The Gaia spectrophotometric standard stars survey -II. Instrumental effects of six ground-based observing campaigns

The Gaia SpectroPhotometric Standard Stars (SPSS) survey started in 2006, it was awarded almost 450 observing nights, and accumulated almost 100,000 raw data frames, with both photometric and spectroscopic observations. Such large observational effort requires careful, homogeneous, and automated data reduction and quality control procedures. In this paper, we quantitatively evaluate instrumental effects that might have a significant (i.e.,$\geq$1%) impact on the Gaia SPSS flux calibration. The measurements involve six different instruments, monitored over the eight years of observations dedicated to the Gaia flux standards campaigns: DOLORES@TNG in La Palma, EFOSC2@NTT and ROSS@REM in La Silla, [email protected] in Calar Alto, BFOSC@Cassini in Loiano, and [email protected] in San Pedro Martir. We examine and quantitatively evaluate the following effects: CCD linearity and shutter times, calibration frames stability, lamp flexures, second order contamination, light polarization, and fringing. We present methods to correct for the relevant effects, which can be applied to a wide range of observational projects at similar instruments.Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in Astron. Nach

Conservação pós-colheita de melão Galia 'Solar King' a temperatura ambiente sob influência de 1 - MCP (1 - metilciclopropeno).

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o efeito de doses de 1-MCP (0, 100, 300 e 900 ppb) no comportamento respiratório e na qualidade pós-colheita de melão Galia 'Solar King', em temperatura ambiente (24,5 ± 0,9ºC e 86,4 ± 7,9%). O 1-MCP reduziu a atividade respiratória e atrasou o pico de produção de etileno mas não afetou o teor de sólidos solúveis totais, a acidez total titulável, o pH e a aparência externa. Contudo, a aparência interna dos frutos tratados foi melhor, principalmente na concentração de 300 ppb. Além da melhor aparência, aquela dose possibilitou atividade respiratória mais baixaSuplemento 2. Edição do 42 Congresso Brasileiro de Olericultura e 11 Congresso Latino Americano de Horticultura, Uberlândia, jul. 2002

Markov evolutions and hierarchical equations in the continuum I. One-component systems

General birth-and-death as well as hopping stochastic dynamics of infinite particle systems in the continuum are considered. We derive corresponding evolution equations for correlation functions and generating functionals. General considerations are illustrated in a number of concrete examples of Markov evolutions appearing in applications.Comment: 47 page

The optical companion to the binary millisecond pulsar J1824-2452H in the globular cluster M28

We report on the optical identification of the companion star to the eclipsing millisecond pulsar PSR J1824-2452H in the galactic globular cluster M28 (NGC 6626). This star is at only 0.2" from the nominal position of the pulsar and it shows optical variability (~ 0.25 mag) that nicely correlates with the pulsar orbital period. It is located on the blue side of the cluster main sequence, ~1.5 mag fainter than the turn-off point. The observed light curve shows two distinct and asymmetric minima, suggesting that the companion star is suffering tidal distortion from the pulsar. This discovery increases the number of non-degenerate MSP companions optically identified so far in globular clusters (4 out of 7), suggesting that these systems could be a common outcome of the pulsar recycling process, at least in dense environments where they can be originated by exchange interactions.Comment: accepted for publication on ApJ, 17 pages, 5 figure

Avaliação do amaciamento de melão Galia 'Solar King' tratado com 1-MCP (1-metilciclopropreno) através da firmeza da polpa e tomografia de RM.

Objetivou-se avaliar o efeito de doses de 1-MCP (0, 100, 300 e 900 ppb) sobre o amaciamento da polpa (firmeza e tomografia de RM) e a formação da região de abscisão do pedúnculo, durante o armazenamento (24,5 ± 0,9ºC e 86,4 ± 7,9%) de melão Galia 'Solar King'. O 1-MCP atrasou a evolução de ambas as variáveis. As melhores respostas foram obtidas com 300 e 900 ppb, recomendando-se a primeira como dose econômica